CLOVIS, N.M. -- A Facebook page is being investigated by Clovis Police and Clovis Municipal Schools for cyber bullying.
The Clovis Police Department said it launched an investigation when it received several complaints from Clovis school students about derogatory comments. According to the complaints, the comments on the social media site were meant to annoy, seriously alarm and terrorize others without any lawful purpose.
The conduct, police said, is considered harrassment under New Mexico State Criminal Law.
Police are working closely with the Clovis Municipal Schools Administration and Superintendent of Schools Office in order to identify victims of cyber bullying. They are also working to find out who the students are who are participating in the harrassment.
The harrassment includes comments posted to Facebook using cell phones and computers that are derogatory.
Pronews 7 located a page based out of Clovis that viciously attacks high school students. The page asks people to confirm or deny rumors about other people. The rumors often times contain profanity and insult people's sexual orientation, sexual history and physical appearance among other things.
The page has more then 550 friends.
"This type of Cyber Bullying and Harassment will not be tolerated in our school system," said Clovis Municipal Schools Superintendent Terry Myers and Clovis Police Chief Steve Sanders.
Police said court orders are being sought for Facebook and Internet providers to produce computer records on the page. The information would help identify the web page administrator(s) identities, Facebook page posters, their IP addresses and other Facebook account information.
Names of the harassing posters along with the Facebook web page have already been electronically preserved for possible prosecution, police said.
Students who have posted on the page will be contacted by police for interviews along with their parents, authorities said.
Anyone who feels they have been a victim of cyber bullying is asked to call police or contact a school administrator.
Tips on this crime can be anonymously reported by texting "TIPCPD" plus their crime tip to CRIMES (274637,
All personal details of the text message cannot be seen by police because the message is encrypted and routed through secure servers.
